Saturday,
October 17, 2026
Cadiz,
Spain
70o
F, sunny
The port of Cadiz
Cádiz
is an ancient port
city built on a narrow peninsula surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. Located on the southwestern coast of Spain, it
is widely considered one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western
Europe, first settled by the Phoenicians around 1100 BC. It has approximately 110,000 residents.
This
historic port was not only shaped by the Phoenicians, but also the Romans, Moors
and Spanish. Cadiz is also considered one
of Europe’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, spanning more than 3,000
years.
The
tour we scheduled with “Spain Day Tours” to Juarez and Seville was
cancelled so we were on our own today in a new port we had never visited
before. TK remembered his first time in Europe in 1968—the U.S.S. Columbus, a guided missile cruiser, docked in the port of Rota, about a
half hour away.
We
decided to find our way to the market, and asked locals along the way for
directions. At the Plaza de la
Liberatad, there were vendors outside the Mercado Central de Abastos de Cadiz
selling vegetables, fruits, baskets, leather goods, and so on, BUT inside there
were over SIXTY fish vendors, I counted! Stalls were overflowing with
glistening fish, octopi, shellfish, crab legs, snails, langostino, cuttlefish,
eels, squid, bluefin tuna, dogfish, prawns, oysters, and so much more. This is the largest fish market I have ever
seen—that said, we must have missed the meat market part.
Mercado Central de Abastos de Cadiz
Spain's oldest covered market, serving the city of Cadiz continuously since 1838. That's over 188 years of fishermen, farmers, and shoppers passing through those same neoclassical doors.
Vendors outside the Mercado
Seafood!
Of course we were looking for a café, but strangely we did not see a bakery or pastry shop. We strolled along and finally came upon a café (La Marquesa de las Huevas) with STRONG coffee and TK’s cappuccino, a croissant and an almond cake like pastry for TK. Another reason for a stop like this is that most cafes have a restroom but one has to buy something. That is totally fair.
Cadiz is very clean, with many lovely parks and statues and memorials. People were friendly and helpful. There was a peaceful protest at a government building, not unlike the protests we saw in Copenhagen, Sweden, Norway, and other countries we visited in August-September/Baltic-North Seas.
The Spanish Constitution of 1812 was briefly in effect between 1812 and 1814, and again between 1820 and 1823. Though limited in longevity, the Constitution of 1812 had a significant impact on burgeoning nationalism and liberalism not only in Spain but throughout Western Europe and the Americas. The constitution was drafted by the Cortes at a time when Cádiz was one of the few free Spanish cities during the Peninsular War. I tried to do the research--this monument was completed in 1929---without further research, I do not know what parts of the Constitution may be in the current one.
Padlock sculpture installed in 1929, as part of the
Spanish Constitution of 1812 sculpture, commemorating Article 371
I think my writing group will appreciate the symbolism here: the tip of the padlock's shackle (u-shaped) is a fountain pen nib.
TK’s
Takes: We had no tour so we wandered around and probably missed a lot of sites.
Sometimes tours have people who are sick, coughing and sneezing, so we avoided that
today!
He
noticed a lot of dogs—dachshunds, doodles, Yorkies, and so on. All seemed
well-behaved.
